Tous les chapitres de : Chapitre 1 - Chapitre 8

"Just a joke." Julian tossed the lighter aside. It clattered against the marble table.He turned to me and covered my hand with his, his voice as low and gentle as ever. "You're not that petty. Right?"I looked into his dark eyes.There was no guilt in them, only the calm certainty of a man who thought he had everything under control.Slowly, I pulled my hand out from under his."I'm not feeling well. I'm going home."I stood without looking at anyone and walked out.Behind me, the room erupted in gasps. Then came Summer's tearful voice. "It's all my fault. Nora must have gotten the wrong idea.""It's not your fault." Julian's voice drifted through the door, tinged with irritation.Without slowing down, I headed straight for the elevator.I'd barely pressed the button when someone seized my wrist.Julian had come after me.Beneath his familiar Armani cologne lingered the faintest trace of freesia. It wasn't mine.It was the scent Summer always wore."Nora, why are you making a scene?"

I stayed in the hospital for three days, hooked up to an IV the whole time. I learned to eat, wash my face, and change my hospital gown with one hand.In those three days, Julian didn't call once.Every night, without fail, he sent the same halfhearted text: Busy. Get some rest.He was convinced that I was just throwing a tantrum—that I'd cool off and come crawling back in a few days, like I always did.After all, in seven years, I'd never once walked away.On the day I was discharged, it was pouring rain.I didn't call the driver. Instead, I took a cab back to the house Julian and I had shared for the past three years.I punched in the code and pushed the door open.The house was quiet, and a faint smell of chicken soup hung in the air.In the dining room, I found an insulated food jar on the table with a sticky note beside it."Sunny wanted chicken soup, so I went out and got a free-range chicken. I left some for you in the pot since your stomach's been acting up. Heat it up when you

London. The night air over the Thames was damp and cool.I stood at the floor-to-ceiling window, holding a glass of red wine and looking down at the glittering city."Ms. Shaw, here's our final offer for tomorrow's acquisition. Take a look."A low, pleasant male voice came from behind me.I turned to face him.Ian Pierce.He was the young founder and CEO of Pierce Capital, one of the biggest names in private equity on both sides of the Atlantic.He was also my new boss."Thank you, Mr. Pierce." I took the file and skimmed it.Ian wore a perfectly tailored black suit. His gaze was sharp behind gold-rimmed glasses.He looked at me with a small smile. "It's been a week since you got to London. Settling in?""Pretty well." I smiled. "Things move fast here. Keeps me from overthinking."Ian joined me by the window, and we looked out over the city."Julian Hale's looking for you," he said. "From what I hear, he's turned New York upside down trying to find you."I paused, then took a sip of wi

A month later, Pierce Capital held an exclusive business gala in New York.As Pierce Capital's executive vice president for Europe, I arrived with Ian after most of the guests were already inside.I stepped into the ballroom in a plunging wine-red couture gown and diamond-studded heels, drawing every eye in the room.No one could believe I was the same Nora who used to stand quietly behind Julian in understated monochrome suits. Now, I was bold, glamorous, and impossible to ignore.Julian was there too.He'd lost a lot of weight and looked haggard and withdrawn.The moment he saw me with Ian, he couldn't stop staring."Don't look at the trash. Eyes forward." Ian's low voice sounded beside me as his warm hand closed over mine, steadying me.I smiled and looked away.Just then, there was a commotion at the ballroom entrance."Julian! Julian, help me!"Summer pushed past security and forced her way into the ballroom.She looked like a complete wreck. After her plagiarism was exposed, she